Drummers or bass players?
by gsrfan1
Summary: One questions sparks off an argument that can change everything.


Drummers or bass players?

Set after "Here and There" and before "I do"

Romance/Angst

Won third place for best overall fic in the roomie awards

Ray/Neela

**Summary:** One question sparks off an argument that could change everything. But will it be for better or worse. (No marriage pun intended)

**Author's Note**: This is dedicated to all my Roomie friends at the forum; many thanks go out to them for their help with writing this. I don't really know much about the band, so for the purposes of this fic, Brett plays bass and Kyle plays the drums. Most likely wrong, but I had to pick something.

**Chapter 1**

"Hey Roomie!" was the greeting Neela got when she dragged herself through the door after possibly the worst shift ever.

"Hey Ray" she smiled, happy that he was home, despite their differences she liked hanging out with him after work, "oh, and everyone else!" she added a little less enthusiastically as she looked past Ray and saw his band mates dotted around the living room.

"Oh yeh" Ray smiled awkwardly, "I told you they were coming over right?"

Neela just raised her eyebrows, and gave Ray a look that said **'You know full well that you didn't'**

He looked down at the floor with his hands in his pockets, in his trademark** 'Forgive me'**stance, Neela _knew it well_ and _he knew it would work_,

Neela couldn't help but smile when he put on his best innocent face, "Well, I'm pretty beat, so I'm gonna crash in my room and leave you guys to it" she said starting up the hallway to her room.

She didn't mind hanging out with the guys, but a lot of the time she couldn't help but feel out of place.

"Nah, don't go Dr. Neela" Kyle called, "Come and have a beer with us, unwind a little, you shouldn't have to be stuck in your room because of us, right Ray?"

"Yeh, yeh" Ray smiled, "join us," he added, handing her a beer, glad that she was going to stay.

"Sure, why not" she said as she leaned against the wall, contemplating where to sit, Kyle was next to Molly, Ray was on the floor next to them and Bret was on the sofa with an empty seat to his side, but after what had happened the last time they were on the sofa together, she was a little apprehensive.

"You can sit down you know" Ray said, bringing Neela out of her reverie, "Bret doesn't bite"

'**I wouldn't be too sure about that' **Neela thought nearly choking on her beer. She glanced nervously around the room and saw Kyle and Molly, smiling at her, far too knowingly. She shot Bret a glare, not thinking he would be the guy to kiss and tell. Ray however was apparently oblivious to the situation. '**If Bret told everyone else, why not him?"**

"You okay Neela?" Ray asked.

"Yeh, sure" she lied, "just went down the wrong way."

She sat next to Bret but as far away as she could get, **'Why is she acting so weird?' **Ray thought.

"No Nick tonight?" Neela asked trying to move on from the awkwardness.

Ray gave her a brief look of shock, surprised that she had remembered one of his friends; he couldn't name a single one of hers.

'**Does she have any friends outside the hospital?'** he thought

"What?" Neela asked at Rays raised eyebrows, "it's hard to forget names when drunk people shout them at the top of their lungs at 3am." She added, giving Ray a pointed look.

Ray grinned cheekily of the memory of it, they'd come home from a gig and Nick had joked that he was going to profess Ray's undying love to Neela for him. Ray had shouted his name in an effort to stop him from going to her room and waking her and ended up waking her anyway. Not that he was sorry, the sight of Neela standing in her doorway wearing only her pajama bottoms and a tank top had comforted him on many a lonely night.

"Nick's got a hot date tonight," Kyle smiled, noticing the little interaction between the two of them.

"Lucky him" Neela smiled, looking over at Ray briefly, wishing that she had a date too.

'**Neela, are you crazy?' **she asked herself **'he's not interested, he proved that when he practically set you and Bret up, let it go'**

"So, Neela" Molly began, before the uneasy silence consumed the room again, "how was work?'

Neela sighed and took a sip of her beer as an answer, "One of those days, huh" Ray smiled knowingly.

"Yeh," she answered, "we had a bus full of kids come in after being hit by a truck, they were all okay, but it gets to you, you know?"

Ray nodded, not talking his eyes away from Neela's, he certainly did know, sometimes the things you saw made you want to quit, the rest of the time they made you know you had to stay. Ray was bought out of his daydream by the sound of Bret coughing; he and Neela had been gazing at each other for what seemed like forever and the others had noticed.

"And to make matters worse" Neela continued trying to play down the moment, " I got stuck in an elevator for two hours…… with Morris!"

"Are you okay?" Bret asked sounding pretty concerned and resting a hand on hers.

"Of course, she is" Ray laughed, he didn't understand why Bret was being so dramatic, "Morris is an idiot but he's not that bad."

"Yeh, but being stuck in an elevator for two hours when you're claustrophobic has got to freak you out" Bret answered, looking at Ray like he was an idiot.

Ray turned to Neela, who shyly smiled, she wasn't liking all the attention that was coming her way, she had never been the centre of attention before and she knew she wouldn't like to be again.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ray asked, sounding hurt.

"Why would I" Neela asked, unsure why he was making such a big deal of it, "It never came up before." She reasoned, trying to change the subject.

"Oh, right, but it came up with Bret?" Ray practically spat, trying to hide his jealousy. **'She's my roommate'** he thought, '** I should know this stuff about her not him.'**

"Okay!" Kyle spoke cutting off the angry silence, "how about some music?" he added, heading to the stereo.

"Sure" everyone but Ray and Neela said, he was too busy glaring at Brett and she was hoping the sofa would swallow her whole.

Kyle took a CD out of its case and looked at Molly for help, if the night carried on like this, he was going to need it to keep the peace. A couple of seconds in to the music Kyle turned around and saw the anger dissipating, and said,

"Oh Neela, I forgot, you don't really do this kind of music, want me to change it?"

"Oh no, no," she said instantly, "The Clash is fine with me!"

This time it was Ray's turn to almost choke on his beer, "You know who the Clash are?" he asked surprised.

"Yes Ray" she smiled, "I grew up in England, not a cave."

"Ha, ha" Ray smiled, putting a hand to his chest, "you're killing me"

This made all the others laugh and it eased the tension instantly.

"Besides, they're a British band, it's pretty much forbidden over there not to know who they are."

As the hours went on, the empty beer bottles stacked up. **'No, I really shouldn't'** turned into **'I'll just have one more'** and then in to **'sure why not'** until Neela had no intention to leave. Not that she could have walked to her room on her own anyway.

Neela just sat on the couch daydreaming about Ray, who was sitting across from her, not that she would ever admit it to herself or anyone else.

'He's a rocker, I'm a 'sensible' girl, it would never work' 

"Earth to Neela" Molly called to her.

"Huh, what?" she asked.

"I said, which is it?' she explained.

"Which is what?" she asked confused.

"Have you been listening to a word we've been saying" Ray grinned.

"Sure…… kind of……. Okay not really?" she admitted.

"Brett and Kyle have been fighting all day over who is the most desirable member of a band, the drummer or the bass player" Molly explained, "you have now been nominated to end the discussion once and for all before Ray and I strangle them to death."

"So Neela, drummers or bass players?….."

Chapter 2

"That's not fair" Kyle whined jokingly, "we know she has a soft spot for bass players" he grinned, nudging Bret.

If looks could kill, Kyle would have been six feet under, and so would Neela for that matter, who had become the object of Ray's glare.

It was all fitting into place for him now, the way Neela was nervous around Bret, the way she nearly tipped her beer all over the carpet earlier. **'Son of a …….' **he thought.

Molly slapped Kyle hard on the arm, "I think we better get going" she said, the tension in the air obvious to only her it seemed, as she was sober. An advantage of being pregnant, you can see danger coming.

"Good idea" Kyle agreed, realising his mistake, a little too late "you coming man?" he asked Bret.

Bret said nothing; too busy keeping an eye on Ray who he was sure was ready to murder him.

"Okay man, your funeral" Kyle added as he and Molly shut the door after them.

"Ray?" Neela asked quietly as she watched him pace the room.

"I can't believe you" was the answer she got, and it wasn't even directed at her, "You slept with her? How could you?"

"No!" Bret shouted back, "I didn't, I swear to you I didn't!"

"But you wanted to!" Ray spat back unable to find anymore more words.

"She…." Bret began, but Neela cut him off,

"Excuse me!" she yelled, "but _she_ is in the same room you know!"

Ray and Bret turned to look at her, Bret looking fearful, Ray looking _fearsome_.

"Look Ray" she said more calmly, "I don't know what your problem is, you were the one encouraging me to go out with him."

"Yeh, but I….." Ray started, but didn't get to finish.

"You don't own me Ray, I can sleep with whoever I want, and for your information, I didn't sleep with Bret, not that it's any of your business. As for you" she said, turning to face Bret," don't think you're off the hook, I can't believe you told Kyle and Molly! It was none of their business either."

Neela stumbled a little from her sudden exertion; she was far too drunk to be yelling like that. Ray reached out to help her, but she drew back, throwing daggers at him with her eyes.

"I am far too tired and far too drunk to carry on this conversation, so I'm going to bed, if you two children want to stay out here and fight that suits me fine, just keep it down okay" she fumed, walking away from both of them, leaving them standing in the living room, really looking like two children that got caught doing something they shouldn't.

Chapter 3

As the cool air of her bedroom hit her, Neela could feel the tears on her face.

'**Damn you, Ray!'** she thought, '**You don't want me, you encourage me to date your friend, then yell at me when you find out I tried, what the hell do you want from me?'**

Lying down on her bed, she slowly drifted off to sleep, the sound of muffled voices on the other side of the door slightly comforting.

X X X X

Ray sat on the sofa, suddenly sobered up by the argument, Bret lingered by the door not sure whether or not he should leave. When it became clear that Ray wasn't going to start first, Bret plucked up the courage to talk.

"Look man, I'm sorry, if I'd had any idea how you felt about her I never would have done anything, I promise you."

"What are you talking about? The way I feel about her? I don't feel anything about her."

"Yeh right," Bret smiled cautiously, " that's why you spent half the night staring at her, why you spend every band practice talking about her, why if she hadn't been here you would have killed me when you found out I put the moves on her."

"You don't know what you're talking about" Ray said, trying to deny it all.

"Don't I? Come on, everyone knows that every song we have is written about her, you love her."

"Oh yeh, then if its so obvious, why did you do it," Ray asked, unable to contain his anger.

"Because at the time it wasn't, you were just roomies back then, _maybe_ friends, but that was all."

"I don't know what I hate more," Ray sighed, "The fact that she let you put the moves on her, or that you're right. I can't stop thinking about her, I don't know what to do."

"You have to talk to her," Bret answered, "and just so you know, she didn't let me do much, she changed her mind and I went home. I don't think she was ever really interested in me, she was just lonely. Let her cool down, then talk to her."

"Talk to her? I'll be lucky if I even get in the same room with her, without her trying to kill me after this. God, what have I done?"

"I'd love to help you out, but she'd probably take a swing at me too right now, I've got to go," he said heading to the door.

"Okay" Ray half-smiled, somehow not even remotely mad at his friend anymore, the reality of his situation depressing him too much, "see you around"

Bret took a final look at his band mate and friend as he closed the door behind him, **'Man, that boy has got it bad'**

Chapter 4

Neela rolled over and groaned, not sure whether it was the hangover or the events of the previous night that were making her feel sick to her stomach.

Crawling out of her bed, she headed to get some coffee; opening her bedroom door she could see Ray sitting on the sofa. Images of a naughty schoolboy sitting outside the teacher's office sprang to mind; she had to fight to repress a smile.

'Damn, even when I'm mad at him, I find him adorable' 

As soon as he saw her, Ray jumped up from the sofa,

"Neela, hey" the words stumbled out of his mouth, "let me get you some coffee."

Neela didn't have the strength to argue and lowered herself onto the sofa, silently thankful that she had the day off. Ray leaned down and handed her a cup of coffee, a sheepish look in his eye.

He took a seat opposite her; trying frantically to remember the speech he had been rehearsing all morning, it was all in vain, every time he looked at her, he melted and no words came to mind.

Unable to bear the silence anymore, Neela stood and headed back to her room, only to be stopped by a hand taking hers.

"Neela" Ray almost whispered, "I know you're mad at me about yesterday. I had no right to act the way I did. You can date whoever you want and it's none of my business. I have no excuses; I just want you to know that I'm sorry, it'll never happen again."

Neela sighed, shook her head and headed back to the sofa,

"I'm not mad at you Ray, I was, believe me I was" she sighed, "you're right, you had no right to treat me _or _Bret the way you did. But as I didn't find either of your dead bodies this morning I'm guessing you made up."

Ray gave a slight smile at that and sat next to her.

"If you're not mad, what are you?" he asked.

"Confused mainly," Neela answered honestly, "You don't want to be with me, that was hard enough to deal with,"

**She wants me to want her?**

"But you don't want anyone else to have me either, I mean, what's so wrong with me? She continued, "Okay, so I can be a bit of a control freak sometimes, and I'm not the most outgoing person in the world but I………"

She was cut off by the feel of Ray's lips landing softly on hers. Ray was praying that she wouldn't slap him for his sudden show of affection but he just couldn't help it. He had to show her that he did want her, not only that but he needed her.

Ray drew slowly away and tried out to make out the emotion he saw in Neela's eyes, she smiled and said,

"You see Ray, now I'm even more confused, you encourage me to date Bret, you get angry when I do, and then you kiss me, what do you want?"

"You, Neela, I want you," he answered softly, caressing her hair, "I know I never showed it before, it was just because I was scared. As for the thing with Bret, god only knows why I did that, I …….."

This time he was the one being cut off by someone's lips, Neela leaned in to him and deepened the kiss. Ray's hands found his way to Neela's hair and she sighed at his touch, before breaking the kiss.

"I take it you're not confused anymore," Ray smiled.

"No, finally everything makes sense" she smiled back, before leaning back on the sofa, "but I swear to god Ray, if you _ever _let me drink that much again, I'll hurt you"

"You promise?" he smiled cheekily and received a nudge in the arm. "So Neela, which is it?"

"What?"

"Kyle and Bret wanted to know who you preferred, drummers or bass players, you never answered"?

"Neither," she smiled " I'm a front man groupie all the way" she joked, pulling him in for another kiss.

"Ha! I knew it" he smiled against her lips, "I knew it".

The end 

Thanks for reading, please review.


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